A woman's nine-year hope of having a third child has been extinguished after receiving an email from a Russian IVF clinic stating her frozen embryo's storage was terminated in April 2023. Charlotte Cripps, 49, had been storing the embryo, named Tallulah, in St. Petersburg since 2015, intending to use it after having her two daughters, Lola and Liberty, conceived using her late husband Alex's frozen sperm.
Cripps learned of the embryo's potential danger amid escalating drone attacks on St. Petersburg, which prompted her to re-engage with the clinic. She had lost track of storage payments, which were due around 2020, and had been unable to contact the clinic for clarification, partly due to the COVID-19 pandemic and international sanctions following the Russia-Ukraine war.
After initiating contact through a former UK representative for the clinic and a Russian doctor who had opened a new practice, Cripps was eventually provided with an email address for the St. Petersburg clinic's embryology department. The response she received on April 19, 2023, stated that storage had been terminated. Cripps questioned whether the embryo was destroyed or could be retrieved by making late payments, but understood from the clinic's explanation that embryos are discarded if storage fees are not paid.
Cripps expressed shock and disbelief, noting that she had not received any warning letters and questioned why the clinic, which had been easy to contact when she was a patient, could not reach her. She stated that she had not changed her contact details and was unaware of any attempt to contact her in 2021, as the clinic claimed.
The difficult journey to this point began after Cripps's husband, Alex, died in 2014. Alex had tragically taken his own life after struggling with addiction and depression. At the time, Cripps and Alex had undergone six failed IVF attempts. Following his death, Cripps discovered Alex's sperm belonged to her, and she decided to continue their dream of parenthood. After two more unsuccessful IVF rounds in London, she spent the remaining equity from her flat on fertility treatments. A friend provided financial assistance for a final attempt.
Seeking more affordable options, Cripps shipped her eggs and Alex's banked sperm to an IVF clinic in Alicante, Spain. Following two rounds of IVF, Lola was conceived in 2015. The process resulted in two further embryos, including Tallulah, and a supply of Alex's sperm. However, the Spanish clinic informed her that by law, they had to dispose of sperm and associated embryos one year after the donor's death, giving her one week to retrieve them.
After contacting clinics across Europe and the US, Cripps found the St. Petersburg clinic willing and able to accept the embryos and sperm. During a tense transfer process, one document was delayed, but the courier managed to reach the airport in time. At this point, she transferred one embryo, Liberty, and left Tallulah in storage.
Liberty was born in 2018. Cripps stated that she initially didn't think much about Tallulah, viewing her as a 'back-up.' However, as her daughters grew, they began asking about their sister, intensifying Cripps's longing for Tallulah. The prospect of Tallulah being in danger during attacks on St. Petersburg became a significant concern.
Cripps explored options for retrieving the embryo, including hiring international couriers. However, companies refused to handle the transport due to safety concerns following the war in Ukraine. Before the conflict, such a transfer would have cost between £5,000 to £6,000.
Cripps is now struggling to process the news and plans to tell her daughters that their longed-for sister will not be coming home. She expressed guilt and grief, lamenting the loss of a child who was a part of her and Alex. She also raised concerns about the possibility of the embryo being donated to another couple without her consent. Cripps wrote a heartfelt letter to Tallulah, expressing her love and sorrow for not being able to meet her.